Chain attachment



y 1945- A. w. LEMMON CHAIN ATTACHMENT Filed Oct. 6,' 1943 N, ,Y I o W mm W .TE N WWW n Patented May 29, 1945 UNITED STATES PATENT .OFFlCEl-ff;

CHAIN ATTACHMENT Alexis W. Lemmon, Upper Arlington, Ohio, as-

signor to The Jeffrey Manufacturing Company, a corporation of Ohio Application October 6, 1943, Serial No. 505,178

Claims.

This invention relates to a chain attachment or to a chain having an attachment which reinforces the side bar of the chain link.

An object of the invention is to provide a chain attachment or a chain having an attachment which so reinforces a side bar of a chain link as to increase its effective life and to reduce appreciably the danger of breakage thereof.

Another object of the invention is to provide a chain attachment constructed to prevent breakage of the chain under the influence of a load carried thereby.

Other objects of the invention will appear hereinafter, the novel features and combinations being set forth in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawing,

Fig. 1 is a plan view showing a conveyor chain mechanism and bucket type flights including the features of my invention; and

Fig. 2 is a sectional view through one of the flight buckets showing one of the chains of Fig. 1 in side elevation.

Referring to the drawing, the conveyor mechanism illustrated includes a pair of spaced pintle chains I0 formed of pivotally connected links H and attachment links l2, the attachment links l2 and links H being pivotally connected by removable pins l3. The attachment links l2 perform the functions of links H and in addition support a bucket type flight H, the buckets 14 being connected between link attachments l2 on the two spaced chains I0. In the conveyor section illustrated, one bucket is omitted.

It has been found in practice that the usual attachments are such that should one chain lead the other by a slight amount, there is a tendency for the inner side bar to break adjacent its base or next to the thimble of the attachment to which it is integrally formed, since the entire attachment is cast as a single member.

The feature of my invention is to provide a construction which prevents this breakage when one of the chains I0 leads the other or, in other words, when one of the chains In tends to take more of the load than the other. To this end each of the attachments I2 is formed by a pair of spaced side bars l5, l6 which are formed as an integral part of a, cross member constituting a knuckle or barrel H. In fact the entire attachment I2 is preferably formed as an integral steel casting. Extending inwardly from each attachment link I2 and forming an integral part thereof and specifically formed integrally with the inner side bar It thereof is a web l8 to which an attaching plate I9 is integrallyv formed on its innermost edge. The two sides of the bucket flight M are preferably attached to opposite attachment plates 19 by means of bolts or rivets 20. To prevent breaking of the side bar-l6 adlament the knuckle ll, in case one of the chains It) tends to assume all of the load or get ahead of the other chain, I provide reinforcing meansin the form of an integral supporting arm or'ear 2| which extends rearwardly from the web l8 and is spaced inwardly from the side bar l6 and is also an integral part of the link attachment l2.

The rearmost portion of the arm or ear H is provided with a generally cylindrical head 22 attachment link I2 not only through'the' side bars I5 and IE but also through the arm or ear 2| and be transferred by the knuckle ll 'andthe head 22 to the pivot pin 23 which pivotal1yconnects said attaching link to the succe'edingphain link I I As a consequence of this structure should one of the chains ID lead the otherjand thus place a bending load on the side bar 16', because of the presence of the flight l4, said side bar IE will be reinforced and the bending and possible breakage of the side bar l6 which might otherwise take place will be prevented because of the force transmitted through the arm or ear 2| to the pin 23. In other words, the arm or ear 2| will reinforce the side bar IG and effectively free it from the breaking, twisting force which might otherwise result from the condition above mentioned. I

It is to be noted that this result is accomplished without in any way altering the structure between the side bars l5 and I6 and this portion of the link attachment acts substantially in the same way as the ordinary link I I and is'free to receive the tooth of the driving sprocket which drives each chain l0. s

It may be further pointed out that when the conveyor is assembled, the knuckle l1 and the two side bars l5 of the attachment link l2 are between the leading ends of the side bars of the original link ll. Furthermore, the inner side bar of the ordinary link I I is between the side bar I6 and the reinforcing arm 2I and the pin 23 extends through aligned bores or pin holes in the reinforcing arm 2 I, the two side bars of the ordinary link II, the two side bars I 5 and I6 of the attachment link I2 and the knuckle I1 thereof.

Considering the forces on the inside bar only on the ordinary link I I, it is to be noted that these forces are distributed to'the attachment link I2 by way of the pin 23through the head 22 of the reinforcing arm 2| and through the inner side bar,

I8 and knuckle I'I.

It is to be further noted that while the reinforcing arm 2I is rigidly connected to the side bar I6 by means of the web I8, the rear portion thereof including the head 22 is spaced inwardly from said side bar I 6 and knuckle I I to accommodate the head end of the inner side bar ofthe ordinary link I I which is pivotally connected between them by pin 23.

It is also to b noted that each of the attachment links I2 has three longitudinal extending,

integrally connected, spaced apart, force transmitting members in the two side bars I5 and I6 and the arm 2 I, The alined holes in knuckle I1 and head 22 may also be considered as three aligned holes through the two side bars I5 and I6 and head 22.

Obviously those skilled in the art may make various changes in the details and arrangement of parts without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the claims hereto appended, and I therefore wish not to be restricted to the precise construction herein disclosed. I

Having thus described and shown an embodi ment of my invention, what I desire to secureby Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A chain including pivoted links and attachment links, at least one of said attachment links having an integral reinforcing arm spaced from a side bar of said attachment link, and pivot pins connecting said links and attachment links and extending through aligned holes in said attachment links and said reinforcing arm.

2. Achain attachment link including regular chain side bars, and an integral reinforcing arm ment link knuckle having aligned bores, and a connecting pin extending through said bores and through a bore in said link and said attachment link.

4. A chain including a link having side bars, an attachment link having side bars and an integral knuckle, a flight attachment member attached to one of the side bars of said attachment link, a reinforcing arm attached to one of the side bars of said attachment link, said reinforcing arm and the attachment link knuckle having aligned bores, and a connecting pin extending through said bores and through a bore in said link and interconnecting said link and said attachment link.

5. A chain including a link having side bars and an integral knuckle, an attachment link having one of the side bars of said attachment link, a reinforcing arm attached to one of the side bars of said attachment link, said reinforcing arm and the attachment link having aligned bores, and a connecting pin extending through said bores and through a bore in said link and interconnecting said link and said attachment link.

6. A chain including a, link having side bars, an attachment link having side bars, a flight attachment member attached to one of the side bars of said attachment link, a reinforcing arm attached to one of the side bars of said attachment link, said reinforcing arm and the attachment link having aligned bores, and a connecting pin extending through said bores and through a bore in said link and interconnecting said link and said attachment link,

7. An attachment link including a side bar, a flight attaching member connected to said side bar, a reinforcing arm attached to said side bar, said arm and link having aligned pin receiving 4 bores.

' through aligned holes in said link, reinforcing arm and attachment link,

9. An attachment link, including spaced side bars and an integral knuckle, and an integral at-- taching device having an integral reinforcing arm provided with a pivot pin receiving hole.

10. An attachment link having three longitudinally extending integrally formed force transmitting members having aligned connecting pin holes therein, two of said members being connected by an integral knuckle having a, pin' hole aligned with those aforesaid.

ALEXIS W. LEMMON. 

